On a ship, it is desirable in some instances, to have a valve actuator located remotely from the valve itself. One such instance is in the case of a quick closure valve for fuel. It is desirable to have an actuator for such valves at several locations on board the ship remote from the valve so that if the need arises, the valve can be actuated without being at the valve site itself.
It is well known in the prior art to use a motion transmitting remote control assembly utilizing a moveable core element to transmit forces from a remote actuator to actuate or trip a valve. These actuators are typically mounted on support structures such as bulkheads at various locations throughout the ship. These actuators are typically interconnected by a single core element. This core element is directly connected to the valve. There are two common problems which arise from the use of these remote actuators. First, accidental tripping of the valve can be caused by an individual on board the ship who accidentally moves the actuator handle. The second and foremost problem is that movement of the ship in response to external forces causes the valve to be tripped. As the bulkheads on a ship move relative to each other in response to external forces (waves, explosions, etc.), forces tend to pull on the core element which causes the valve to be inadvertently tripped.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,415,099 to Hooper discloses a remote valve actuator assembly. The assembly disclosed shows an actuator located remotely from a valve to be actuated. The actuator handle is connected, by a spring, to a flexible core element which, when movement is imparted thereto, trips the valve. Specifically, as the remote actuator is actuated, a force is imparted to the spring and subsequently to the core element which trips the valve. This spring acts as a shock absorber between the actuator and core element to dampen the forces put on the actuator handle to the core element. This prevents undesirable forces from being transmitted to the valve.